"In his commencement address, Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) directly challenged the class of 2008 to commit themselves to community involvement and global engagement. Obama filled in for Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), whose recent diagnosis with a malignant brain tumor prevented him from speaking at the event.
“At a time of war, we need you to work for peace,” he said. “At a time of inequality, we need you to work for opportunity. At a time of so much cynicism and so much doubt, we need you to make us believe again. That’s your task, class of 2008.”
Obama drew on his experiences as a community organizer in the South
Side of Chicago to illuminate the difficulties of public service, while
still assuring graduates of their potential to make change.
“Should you take the path of service, should you choose to take up one
of these causes as your own, know that you’ll experience frustrations
and failures,” he said. “Even your successes will be marked by
imperfections and unintended consequences…But I hope you’ll remember,
during those times of doubt and frustration, that there is nothing
naïve about your impulse to change the world.”